AfterEffects
by Arishandera
Summary: Without inhibitions, and temporarily abandoning that careful control he was known for. It is a precious and rare moment of vulnerability. Even when drunk, Uchiha Itachi remained an enigma.


**This was suppose to be humorous, but turned quite a bit sentimental. Featuring a rather weird portrayal of a drunk!(if you'd describe him as such)Itachi.  
**

**Warnings: Subtle pairing hints. And just a short bit of action. Nothing hardcore though.**

--

After-Effects

--

Itachi had told Kisame of his decision to face his brother and revealed nothing more.

"It's time that we end this. I am growing very tired," he merely said when Kisame asked why.

He did not think much of it. Kisame reasoned with himself that if he were in Itachi's position, he would also prefer to remove the annoyance of a revenge-bent sibling who apparently had made it his sole goal to kill you. Besides, the younger Uchiha would probably last mere minutes against Itachi. Granted, Kisame found Sasuke impressive. You would have to be if you could manage to cause the death of the destructive Deidara.

But still, facing Itachi would be on a whole different level.

'That kid's going to die,' Kisame thought without any room for doubt. Though he did wonder why Itachi waited so long and only now suddenly decided to have a confrontation.

And so Kisame thought that this was a moment to celebrate. Not only was Itachi going to rid Akatsuki of a threat, but Kisame also found the mere fact that Itachi was initiating a fight a strange yet very much welcomed change. Maybe after Itachi had his share of blood, he wouldn't reprimand him too much about being too eager whenever they disposed themselves of opponents.

"Itachi-san, there's a bar at the town we just passed by..."

Itachi stopped walking and turned his head slightly to look at him.

Kisame decided to elaborate, "It would be the last resting stop we'd pass before we'd have to separate. Though I still can't believe you're sticking me with your brother's friends when I could be watching you fight."

He had to endure Itachi's unnerving red stare for a few seconds before his implied question was answered.

Kisame couldn't help but grin when Itachi wordlessly started walking opposite the direction from their original destination; The Uchiha hideout. He would even say Itachi actually seemed grateful for the delay.

"Just a few hours at most, Kisame," he heard his partner say.

"Of course Itachi-san."

--

Kisame raised an eyebrow when Itachi flatly refused when he offered him a drink after they'd settled themselves at a table. Though they had decided to not don their Akatsuki cloaks since their black underclothes were more inconspicuous (and to try and achieve a more relaxed atmosphere...at least to Kisame), Itachi was acting as if their visit to the local bar was a mission he was eager to get over with.

The younger man had done nothing but sit beside Kisame for the past hour and only requested a glass of water, which he barely touched. The bar was considerably packed and loud, but Itachi managed to ignore them all easily. Kisame did not let this bother him at first, thinking that the other would relax eventually. He soon realized that this was not the case.

"You know...Itachi-san, if you didn't want to go here, you could've said so," Kisame frowned disapprovingly.

Itachi remained silent, though his gaze (which was previously focused on his beverage) shifted to Kisame. Kisame tried to determine what the look meant. Being with Itachi for almost half of the man's life had taught Kisame how to judge the other's emotions despite the absence of words. But for some reason, Itachi was unusually harder to read at the moment.

Kisame had at least expected a dry weary glance, indicating that Itachi had only agreed because Kisame had insisted. Or even a bored uncommitted look, which would tell Kisame he didn't particularly care and only decided to humor his request at a whim. And though it was too much to expect, he also entertained the possibility that Itachi would grace him with an amused air, implying that he was perfectly happy with his glass of water and that Kisame should not ruin the night with his whining.

But now, Itachi was just not showing anything.

His expression was effortlessly neutral. It was not mere indifference, but complete detachment. At that moment, Kisame was given the impression that Itachi was separate from reality. As if he was looking through red-tinted windows and observing the busy life out in the street that went on regardless of his presence.

It unnerved him more than it should have.

Itachi did not seem bothered by Kisame's scrutinizing gaze. When the other didn't seem to plan on talking more, he turned away slowly and said, "Order some sake."

"What? The very moment we got here, I offered you some and you said you don't like drinking," Kisame wondered if Itachi was deliberately trying to confuse him.

He was given a simple reply, "I changed my mind."

Though still skeptical, Kisame waved a hand at the bartender.

--

Kisame had to admit, he was morbidly curious about what Itachi would be like when drunk. That's why he merely watched as the other ordered a third round twenty minutes later.

He was amused at how Itachi drank the alcoholic drink with so much refinement and poise. Whereas Kisame (and everyone said Mist ninja knew) would merely gulp down the shot-glass at one go, Itachi would press his lips at its brim and sip slowly in silence.

Itachi's tolerance was quite impressive for someone who rarely drank. As of yet, he looked as sober as he always was.

'It would be strange if Itachi-san's a loud drunk...' Kisame mused.

After the sixth, Itachi stopped, not looking at all flushed and ruffled. Not even a hair out of place. Kisame found himself feeling a sense of disappointment.

Maybe the reason Itachi rarely drank at all was because he can't get drunk no matter how many shots he had.

After Itachi gently placed his cup on the table, he stared at Kisame in what appeared to be an exasperated way. Kisame could vividly imagine him saying something along the lines of, "There. Happy now?"

Still feeling a bit cheated out of his fun, Kisame sighed and rose up from his seat. "Alright, alright, Itachi-san. Way to go to appease me...somewhat..." he said in resignation, "I guess we could leave."

Kisame left a few bills on the table before making his way to the exit. "Not exactly what I had in mind, but at least I got you to drink. I never really managed that before, eh?" he was not surprised when he was only met with silence. "Hmm, I must say though, you handle alcohol much better than I expected."

Once again, the other did not sound a reply.

Kisame sighed as he stepped out into the dimly-lit street, Itachi was probably irritated that they wasted a few hours in that bar. "I suppose we're leaving the town as soon as we get our things?"

When Itachi did not reply at that, Kisame found himself getting a bit irritated as well. He turned to look at his partner saying, "Really, Itachi, are you a silent drunk or some—" only to stop, realizing that his young partner was not there.

He blinked, "What the hell? Where did he go?"

He looked around and found no trace of the black-haired man. 'Did he go ahead without me noticing? Or...' Kisame walked briskly back to the bar's entrance, pushing his way through the flow of patrons going in and out.

It did not take long for him to get back to their table.

Kisame stared at the sight in front of him. In the short time that he had been absent, Itachi had managed to attract a bar patron to his table. Now, Kisame didn't particularly care if Itachi felt the need to engage in some human contact at all. In fact, he used to always encourage Itachi to make the most out of their brief stop-overs during missions to get even a little bit of action (though Itachi would always decline). Eventually, Kisame learned to accept that there were some people, like Uchiha Itachi, who could live life without sex.

It was pretty shocking for Kisame that Itachi's frigid, anti-human contact image would be shattered eight years into their partnership. It did not help at all that Itachi's new friend was a _man_.

Said man was fairly attractive, Kisame supposed, but he did not really care about the other's appearance. He was too preoccupied in _not_ staring at the stranger's hand, which was carefully placed on Itachi's clothed thigh and stroking up and down slowly.

Itachi did not seem affected by the overly-suggestive gesture and was only staring at the man, who appeared to be saying something, with a vague expression. Kisame noted that his eyes were pitch black, devoid of the usual Sharingan.

"Oi, Itachi-san," Kisame said a bit crossly "You should've told me you wanted to stay instead of letting me go out on my own. I thought you were following me."

Itachi looked up at him, and so did his current companion.

"Kisam—"

"Oi, oi," the man interrupted. "Wait for your turn will you? I'm not done with him yet," he gave Kisame a warning look before turning back to Itachi. "Now, your name, Itachi was it? You can just call me Kai. My place is not far from here, a mere five minute walk. What do you say?"

Itachi's brow furrowed slightly. "...Why should I go with you?"

"Kai" (Kisame had no doubt that the name was fake, as was expected from someone who picks up random people from bars) grinned and slid his hand dangerously close to Itachi's crotch.

"Well..."

Kisame was not happy about being waved aside so rudely. But he was too surprised about witnessing someone groping Itachi to get angry properly. Kisame wouldn't say his partner hated physical contact, but he did seem to avoid it as much as possible. And Itachi never struck him as one to welcome touches from random strangers in bars.

Kisame fully expected Itachi to at least push that offending hand away, but he did not. Kai was still there, grinning smugly.

And Itachi, though he did not seem aroused by the other's ministrations and was frowning, was also doing _nothing _to stop him.

Kisame coughed. "_So_...Itachi-san, should I leave?"

Like before, Itachi looked up when he was addressed.

"...Kisame, I think—"

"Yes, you should," Kai said, giving him a dirty look, and pulling Itachi closer.

Itachi looked at the arm around him dully but did not retort.

Kisame found the situation disconcerting. He also found his hand clenching into a fist at Kai's interruption. "You know, I don't think Itachi-san's interested in you..." he said scathingly, "that would probably explain the reason why you're not getting too much of a reaction out of him."

A glare was thrown at his direction, "Well, he hasn't said 'No, stop,' as well."

And then, as if to spite him (or shock him into a heart-attack, Kisame would argue), the irritating man grabbed the back of Itachi's head and practically smashed their mouths together. Itachi's eyes probably widened by a millimeter, but that was the extent of his reaction. The other's weight forced him to lie almost prone on the length of the seat. Kisame felt his jaw grow slack and drop.

He could only stare as Kai moved away from the Uchiha's mouth and started to move down. One hand started attempting into get into Itachi's pants.

And despite practically being molested, Itachi remained unperturbed. His arms remained slacked at his sides, simply allowing the other to smother him. His black eyes blinked twice. And then he met Kisame's wide unbelieving stare calmly.

"...Kisame..." he spoke slowly, "I think I'm drunk."

The information relayed by that one simple sentence passed through Kisame's mind in a nanosecond. Without hesitation, as if he was waiting forever for Itachi to say those words, Kisame grabbed Kai's shirt and pulled him off Itachi's body. Before the other could protest, he slammed his head on the table. Kai was knocked unconscious. The other customers present stared at the spectacle. What Kisame took to be the manager approached him and timidly requested that they leave.

He did not even retort.

--

"You're a weird drunk. I don't even know how to describe it," Kisame said flatly as he watched Itachi walk into their rented room and sit himself down on the bed. "...You even walk a perfectly straight line."

"I was trying to tell you, but I kept getting interrupted. It was hard to concentrate," Itachi replied, while taking off his sandals.

Kisame snorted. "Yeah, I bet it was," he muttered as he closed the door.

"You seem particularly vexed."

"I just watched that guy molest you like crazy. Please excuse me if I am still suffering some after-effects, Itachi-san."

Itachi fixed him with an expected stare. His eyes were a bit weary, and that slightly vague detached look he wore back at the bar still remained. "Pardon me then, for causing you an inconvenience. It was not intended. I was trying to please you."

Kisame, who had begun inspecting Samehada in the middle of Itachi's statement, stopped at that. "What? Why?" Was Itachi saying he was trying to please Kisame by putting on quite a bit of a show?

"I felt inclined to give in to your requests. That's why I agreed to go to the bar, and eventually, drink."

"Oh…" he felt a strange mixture of relief and disappointment.

"We'll be separating soon, you see," Itachi said.

For some reason, Kisame felt heavy upon hearing the simple and uncontroversial sentence. He found himself unable to reply.

The gentle patter of feet snapped him from his abnormally weighty thoughts. Itachi stood before him. A moment later, Kisame found a hand on his shoulder. "I am thankful though, that you didn't leave me."

A bout of laughter escaped Kisame's throat. "Yeah. I wonder what might've happened if you followed that guy home or something."

"We would've had sex," Itachi answered.

Kisame almost choked on his saliva.

"Yes…I noticed you're very...compliant when you're...drunk," he said in a strained voice.

"Yes, I don't fight to keep control of what's happening as much. That's what alcohol does to people anyways, correct? They strip that person down of his walls and careful control. Temporary bliss and freedom. I suppose that's why some can only proclaim their love to someone when under its effects," Itachi removed his hand from Kisame's shoulder and stepped back.

"Itachi..."

"I'm not fighting for now, Kisame. But I will be, tomorrow, for Sasuke."

"For?" Kisame repeated the word, not understanding what Itachi meant.

"We still have some time," Itachi continued on. "Come, sleep beside me," he turned around and laid himself on the bed.

Kisame followed.

**END**


End file.
